Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the proposed combined authority mayor for Suffolk and Norfolk will have policing powers.

As set out in the English Devolution White Paper, the government’s ambition is that where mayoral geographies align with police force geographies, Mayors will be, by default, responsible for exercising Police and Crime Commissioner functions. This will include where new Mayoral Combined Authorities are created.

We will explore, in time for the English Devolution Bill, the possibility of a single Mayor taking on Police and Crime Commissioner responsibilities across two or more Police Force boundaries where boundaries align, as would be the case in Suffolk and Norfolk.

Legislation currently allows for an incumbent Police and Crime Commissioner to stand for Mayor where they do not hold Police and Crime functions, provided the elections do not run concurrently. We will issue guidance on future mayoral eligibility criteria in due course.